After the success of the online Supermarket Savings 101 course, I started helping some local ladies with couponing and was putting together a list of the best deals at nearby stores for them each week. I kept thinking about how I was sure others could benefit from these lists outside of my circle of local friends.
At the same time, I felt like my personal blog was becoming too over-run with frugal posts and I wanted to have a place to freely share those. I looked for a blog which was covering the drugstore deals and teaching people step-by-step how to cut their grocery bill, and, surprisingly, I found none.
(Back in 2007, blogging was still a new phenomenon so while there were some finance and frugal blogs, to my knowledge, there weren’t any blogs which were specifically dedicated to sharing deals. And based upon the emails I was receiving, I knew that people were really looking for specific, detailed information on how to work the deals and get the best bang for their buck at the grocery store.)
So I kept feeling this nudge in my heart to start a blog dedicated to helping women with the nuts and bolts of using coupons, getting the best deals and also to just share things about finances and saving money we had learned during our lean law school years. I approached my husband about the blog idea and he loved it. However, we both sat on it for a few weeks as we wanted to make sure it was the direction God was leading and I also wanted to make sure I wasn’t biting off more than I could chew.
I also needed a name for the blog, if I were going to start one. We tossed around a lot of possibilities but finally landed on MoneySavingMom.com. I bought the domain and opened up a little Blogger blog. I didn’t even have a header designed for a few months and it was as barebones as it could be, but people started coming and coming and coming. Pretty soon, the blog was averaging around 5,000 visitors per day, then 10,000, then 15,000 and on and on it went.
MoneySavingMom.com has far exceeded my wildest dreams and I’m humbled that God would allow me to be apart of this. Many times when people ask me what is the key to this blog’s success, I’ll tell them, “Hard work and the blessing of God.” I have put a lot of time and effort into the blog and believe that the lessons I’ve learned through failure have been invaluable. However, I know beyond any shadow of a doubt that MoneySavingMom.com would not be anywhere near what it is without God’s blessing upon it.
For some reason, God allowed us to be at the right place at the right time. We didn’t know that the economy was going to go downhill just a few months after MoneySavingMom.com was born. Nor did we know that couponing and frugality were going to become extremely popular. In addition, I knew very little about SEO when I started (search engine optimization, i.e. how you get your blog to show up at the top of the list when people use a search engine).
I’ve made some major mistakes along the way. I’ve offended people by careless words and actions. I’ve struggled with having my priorities in order. I’ve unintentionally hurt people who are very close to me. I struggle with thinking I am somebody (and every time that happens, God will smack me right in the forehead to remind me how human and fallible I am!)
It’s been a humbling and growing process to have the responsibility upon my shoulders of hundreds of thousands of people around the world reading what I write. You all have been gracious, long-suffering and incredibly kind to me along the way and I appreciate it very much.
I’m honored to be at a place now where I can completely choose my own hours to work and have a very talented team of people who do much of the behind-the-scenes work so that I can give the best part of my day to my husband and children. It hasn’t always been this way and if I were to do over parts of my life, I’d definitely seek, by the grace of God, to work less and have my priorities more in order.
Working from home can be a great thing, but if your family and friends are run over or short-changed in the process, it’s not worth it. At the end of my life, it won’t matter how many blog posts I wrote or how much money I made, but it will matter that I was faithful as a wife and mom! As I’ve often said, anyone can be a successful blogger, but only one person can be your husband’s wife and your children’s mom.
Over the next few weeks, I’d love to answer any specific questions you all might have related to working from home in my Saturday posts. So if you have a question related to working from home you’d love to see answered, please leave it in the comments here or email me. I can’t promise I’ll have an answer or that I’ll be able to get to every question (depending upon how many are asked!), but I’ll at least pick a few and give them my best shot!
Thank you for sharing your work-at-home story. It encourages me in my endeavors.
Thank you for your realness! I am an entrepreneur and blogger and I struggle with keeping my priorities straight. I definitely focus a lot on the kids, but found myself barely giving my husband any of my time or focus. I decided I’d start spending focused time with him everyday and would put him second only to God. It has helped so much and I can’t wait to learn more from you on how you juggle it all.
I started following your blog right as the economy went down. Couponing was all the rage, and I had no idea what I was doing! Now, years later, I still read your encouraging posts about saving money. I am now stepping out on faith and starting my own blog. Something I never dreamed I would do. It feels overwhelming at times, but I just feel God telling me just to share what I know so that is what I am doing. Thank you for your series on blogging. It has been a huge help and an encouragment.
I am so proud of you! Way to go!
I really love your blog and read it all the time, I started blogging with the idea of basically journaling to get things off my chest and vent. Well I dont have a huge following, I think 7 people lol! But I have had several people tell me they really enjoy my blog and I have some ideas for big changes I’d like to make, with that being said, I have no idea where to begin! I would like to earn money with my blog, I would like to increase my followers obviously, I am interested in reviewing products and doing giveaways but I AM CLUELESS on where to begin! I am lost. I follow a blog called mommab and I like how she does a diff review and giveaway all the time, I dont know how to get started at all! Can you please advise me on the basics of getting started! Also I want to thank you for always keeping God in everything you do, I like that while I am reading you blog your keeping God in the forfront of my mind! God Bless!
Hi Kristin, I recommend checking out Crystal’s Income-Earning Ideas page. Scroll down a bit and you’ll see the links to her blogging series. I hope that helps!
I love your website. It has really helped me with my budget. I would love to work from home and I love helping people with their budgets and grocery bills. I am curently teaching a Financial Peace class and have helped so many people cut down their shopping cost! I have tried to think of what I can do from home, but I am not crafty to make things. I was in youth ministry for a long time and just feel stuck with ideas. Thanks so much for your help to my budget!!!!
Thanks so much, Crystal, for putting this series together! Being able to see how all your hard work has and is paying off is an inspiration to the rest of us!
I wondered if you would be willing to tell approximately how much MSM is earning. I know you say that about 90 hours of work go into it each week now – can I ask how much it was making when you started adding people to your team?
We’ve chosen not to share earning figures publicly — for a variety of reasons. But it continues to be very worth the ROI and we’re excited to be using it to provide some jobs for other WAHM’s and support some of our very favorite charities, too!
So, I’ve been playing with the whole idea of blogging, just for fun and if anything comes, it comes. What’s the best way to get started? I have a variety of “posts” I’ve typed in word, but when I re-read them, I think-WOW that’s lame, and delete. I know it is a process to find your writing style and where you fit in the wild blogging jungle. I’ve been reading your series but I’m still not sure where to start? Do you think it’s best to have a topic defined and blog only on those topics? Is it best to start as a website or in one of the blogger sites? What would you do differently when you first started?
Thanks so much for sharing your inspiration and ideas!
Check out my Blogging for Profit series here: https://moneysavingmom.com/downloads/income-earning-ideas
(It’s outdated and I’m planning to update and re-run it soon, but it will at least give you the nuts and bolts.)
Hey Crystal!! Ok, here is my question: I would like to know how you actually got your idea from your brain into blog/website form. You know me…..I have IDEAS, but I never seem to be able to get them from point A to point B. I could really use some guidance or ideas in this area. Seriously…..did you write it on paper, follow some kind of process that some one else suggested? I know we have talked about this, but could we give it a go again?? Thanks!!! 🙂 Love to all. c.
I used to just blog “by the seat of my pants” — you know, open up the blogging platform and start writing! I now plan posts at least a week in advance and at least outline the majority of them on paper.
I use a Google calendar to input and schedule out my ideas, series I hope to run, individual posts, etc.
There’s been a lot of trial and error and tweaking to figure out what works for me — and what works is continually evolving!
Thanks for this website – its wonderful. How did you start getting traffic? Was it strictly through search engines or did you let friends and family know about it then let it grow from there?
I recently took a jump and quit my job–why–i just wanna enjoy my family–cook for them–love them–support them. My job was not allowing me to do that and i was afraid time would fly by and one day I would find myself crying that I didnt do as much as I wanted to for my children.
I am looking–researching for something to do online so that I can have some sort of income.
I love your blog–it has saved me so much money and I feel that i am helping my husband by saving money on all these items–so thank you!
Thank you so much for these posts! I agree with everyone else – this is probably my favorite post in this seriesyet. For me, it is so good to hear that you have help, because in all honesty I see all of you “mega-bloggers” and think every day . . .”How do they manage to keep this up???”
But the most precious part for me for sure was the reminder that there are LOTS of other bloggers out there, but only one of me to be a wife to my hubby and momma to my kids. WHEW!!! What a reminder that one is! My little girl and I took a few minutes tonight to read a few Bible verses, and I realized that there’s no post I’ll ever type that will have the impact on her heart the way spending time teaching her will. Thanks for the encouragement and wisdom you’ve shared in these posts!!!
Thanks for being so honest about the up and down sides of blogging. I couldn’t let myself start blogging for a year and a half after the passion to have a blog was ignited in my heart. (Your blog was the first one I ever read, and before that I didn’t even know what one was!)
I knew I could let blogging take over, and I couldn’t let one more thing take my focus away from the state of my home. So it wasn’t until God gave me the idea of using blogging as way to KEEP my focus on my home that I started one. You are such an inspirational example of someone who is constantly striving to keep family first while doing her absolute best at the job (and truly it’s a ministry) that has also been given to her.
I think it’s hard for people to understand the passion behind blogging, and the work that truly goes into it. THanks for admitting that it’s a roller coaster sometimes, and that with the joy and success come many tears and frustrations.
I love that you’re using your blog to keep you accountable to better your home and your life. That’s such a wonderful use of blogging!
(By the way, your profile picture on your blog just cracks me up! And congrats on the 30-Day Shred progress!)
@Crystal,
Thanks! I’m blessed to have a husband who (although he can’t help rolling his eyes) is willing to take 70 pictures of me in my crazy get-up with all sorts of facial expressions until I’m satisfied with one.
There should probably be a blogger-hubby support group out there!
How funny that you wrote this…it was just what I needed to hear. I’ve recently become very busy with running my home business and craft blog and while I would love to achieve amazing things with both, I have to make sure my priorities stay as a mom and wife. And how dumb am I that I didn’t even think of that…it will only matter if you were faithful as a wife and mother. That’s so true and makes me feel better when I find myself struggling with business to put my family first. Thanks!
Crystal, thank you so much for putting together this series. It has helped me on my journey of blogging. You have given me the encouragement that I needed to stick with it. And you have reminded me that spending time with my family is more important than earning a few bucks here and there. Even though I do enjoy blogging, I have to pry myself away from the computer sometimes b/c I feel obligated to get just one more post out. But in reality my true obligations lay in my family and my service to God. Thanks again for everything you do!
Oh Crystal, those are words of wisdom……At the end of my life, it won’t matter how many blog posts I wrote or how much money I made, but it will matter that I was faithful as a wife and mom! As I’ve often said, anyone can be a successful blogger, but only one person can be your husband’s wife and your children’s mom.
At the end of this life, we’ll never regret the time we lived to honor Him and do those things He’s asked us to, the rest is just chaff.
I am thankful that God led you to “do” this blog. I found it in early 2008 when my husband’s small business slowed with the economy. We’ve since lost 60% of our income, yet I have been able to remain a SAHM. I’ve learned so much here about spending less, and in part due to your blog, have had a whole change of heart about so many areas of my life. I’ve actually been able to consider the income reduction a blessing – not that I wouldn’t want it back, but am thankful for my new outlook and priorities in life now. Thanks for all your work!
Thank you for sharing your stories. You have been such a blessing. It’s NOT just because you help us with the coupons but also your great example to be DEBT FREE. It’s so encouraging especially in the current economic situation right now.
Thanks for writing this post. You know that you’ve been a huge influence in my house when my husband knows who “Money Saving Mom” is! I’ve gotten so much from reading your blog the last few years. The best part of your blog is that your wonderful personality and service to God comes through in your writing.
Just as an aside…Could you update us as to your new financial goals now that you bought your house? I enjoy the financial update posts the most because they keep me motivated to meet our goals.
Yes, ma’am! The financial goals update post was supposed to happen every week for the past three weeks and kept getting bumped. But I promise it is happening next week. For real. 🙂
Thank you for your sweet words, by the way. Your comment about your husband knowing who I am cracked me up. 🙂
how do you find a legitimate work from home job any suggestions
Crystal,
Thank you and your team for all the post that we get to read. You guys are very inspriational. God bless!
Your last quote is perfect! I need to keep it handy for reference! It’s tempting for so many to spend all their free to blogging to bring in some extra money, when the reality is, most bloggers are earning less than minimum wage when they count up the hours spent working. You’ve definitely found a fantastic niche and have helped so many in the process. The fact that you give so much glory to the Lord for your success says a lot about you. Thanks so much for sharing!
Thank you for this piece! I just discovered your blog today, and what a success it is. I have been overwhelmed by the work load lately, and I definitely have to learn when to say no thank you to a “job”.
Learning to say “no” is the most freeing thing, isn’t it?
And welcome here, by the way!
Wow! Thank you for that last line! I enjoyed designing my blog and now I love writing, but I didn’t realize how much time it would take! It took me at least 3 weeks to get the design and theme put together (working during the kids’ 2 hour naps and in the evening).
What I struggle with is constantly thinking about writing ideas and design ideas when I’m not working on the blog. It is really hard sometimes to put it all aside and be completely with my family.
@Vanessa,
Yes, I struggle with that too – thinking about the blog when I’m with my family. I’m looking forward to the Relevant Conference, and especially Crystal’s keynote on “Keeping First Things First”. I wonder if they’ll make the presentations available somehow to those who weren’t able to attend?
I sometimes have a notebook with me and just jot those ideas down if they come to me at odd times so that I don’t have to worry I’m going to forget them later!
I’d also encourage you to consider a complete media fast for 12-24 hours once every week or two weeks. It’s just good to get away from it and clear our minds so that our lives are not becoming consumed with blogging.
@Crystal, Thanks for the advice. I have been setting aside Sunday as a day for no blogging or writing, BUT it is so tempting to go check those stats! 🙂
@Susan J-I looked up the Relevant Conference and it looks like it will be an amazing experience with awesome speakers! I would love to hear their wisdom and advice.
Thank you for this series – I have really enjoyed it. One struggle I have had is the growth of the blog – like you said – it comes by hard work and God’s blessing…and I feel so blessed…my number one struggle is answering ALL those emails!!! How did you handle off those when you were alone.
I don’t make money on my site so it’s just me and most likely will always be that way… – but I am getting hundreds of emails a month mostly marital issues questions… with homeschooling, managing my home and just doing the regular daily blogging stuff, facebook, twittering – these get pushed to the back burner and PILE up and then they hang over my head and stress me out. I still have emails from May to answer – UGH!
Email is the ONLY stressful part of blogging for me! Is there a solution to this? I created an auto email answer last month finally…but I don’t see how I’ll ever be able to get caught up and as I grow so will these emails…I love my readers dearly and do not want to hurt them by not answering them 🙁
Signed – Scared of my inbox,
Courtney
http://www.womenlivingwell-courtney.blogspot.com
@Courtney(WomenLivingWell),
Hi Courtney-
Are you choosing not to make money with your site? Or are you not sure how?
-jen
@Jen@FrugalFreebiesandDeals, Yes, it’s just a choice – when I started the blog it was only meant to be read by friends at church etc. I was surprised to get so many new readers…so the intent was to blog for a ministry to encourage women – not really to be a WAHM. Thus far, I have felt I should keep it that way since that is how God first laid it on my heart to be. So I plan to stay that way until God shows me otherwise.
Courtney
@Courtney(WomenLivingWell),
And just brainstorming here but maybe instead of answering all the individual emails you could write a post and start it with..
I’ve been getting a lot of emails about XXX.. I would love to talk about this subject today with you…
-jen
Excellent idea! And make it clear on your contact page that you can’t get to all the emails but you use them as inspiration for posts. See my contact page:
https://moneysavingmom.com/contact
And have a good FAQ page which covers the most-asked questions:
https://moneysavingmom.com/frequently-asked-question
@Jen@FrugalFreebiesandDeals, I have done this in the past, when the same question is asked over and over – but often times I get the most intimate questions – like pastor wives who have no one else to talk to about their miserable marriage or abused wives with very specific questions – ugh! Some topics I’m afraid to talk about on-line because I may draw wierdos for example the very common “What do I do about my husband watching P*r*?” I have not written on it yet…I’m kinda afraid to… I do have a few things that I copy and paste over and over to shorten rewriting the same advice – but it doesn’t seem to be lightening my load to where I’d like it to be.
Every time I get a financial question I send them to your website :-)!!!
Courtney
One wise woman told me recently that she prays and asks the Lord to only have those people email her whom He wants her to minister to. I thought that was a fabulous idea!
I’m blessed now in that I have assistants who take care of most of my email and only forward on those I need to see/respond to. But for a long time I didn’t have this. And for me personally, my mantra just had to be that I blog without obligation. If I can get some emails answered, wonderful! But it’s totally okay if many go unanswered so that I can devote the bulk of my time to being a wife and mom. That said, you can still pray for the person and pray that God brings Godly counsel to them. You can also set up canned responses on Google which allow you to quickly insert responses with answers to questions you receive often.
I also think there can be a danger in counseling women a great deal whom you’ve never met outside of email. If they are having deep marital issues, I think these things often can be better addressed by someone in their local community who knows them or can get a better understanding of their situation. So I’ve often pointed people to someone local in these cases.
Remember that even Jesus didn’t heal everyone. You are only one person, seek the Lord for Who He would have you minister to, do what you can do with the time and energy God has given you and let go of guilt over what you can’t do.
(Oh, one more thing: It helps me is to file emails which don’t need to be dealt with right away in Google files and then have a set time each week that I deal with these files, by order of priority.)
@Crystal, LOVE this advice – thank you so much!
I do have a filing system with levels of urgency. I also have hotline numbers I refer women to – like Focus on the Families counseling line and I regularly tell women to talk to their pastor or a trusted older women. So I have deflected many issues this way.
I just can’t seem to stop the steady stream…I guess it just shows me how many marriages are struggling.
So the key thing I just took from your reply is I think I am praying wrongly… I pray over every lady who emails me once the email comes in – but I should be praying IN ADVANCE that God would only let the women email me who I can really minister to – and who are listening (I think some just need a shoulder to cry on and I don’t mind being that shoulder…but I want to use my time wisely)
THANK YOU – a light bulb just went on – I need to be praying in advance about who is going to be emailing me this week!
Got it and I’m on it – thank you so sincerely much for your help in this matter Crystal! (thanks Jen to you too 🙂 I appreciate your time!
Much Love,
Courtney
I’m not a mom [yet] but I know I will be one day.
While I’m young and learning in advance, WHAT can I do to make money? Where do I look for ideas and resources? I’m not artistic or crafty (not being negative…but I’ve tried and I can barely color in the lines :-))
I’m in my last semester of college and my major is Public Speaking…and I don’t even know where to look for a “real” job, let alone, how to potentially supplement income in the future when I’m married.
I’m not looking for how to make a million dollars…but even just making an extra few bucks a week would be nice. I guess what I’m asking is: where can I look for a list of IDEAS?
Thank you! 🙂
Here you go: https://moneysavingmom.com/downloads/income-earning-ideas
The list is by no means exhaustive, but I promise you that if you implement some of the ideas, you’ll definitely be able to make some extra cash each week.
I started following in late 2007 when my husband lost his job. We got through it (and kept our DD in childcare so he could fulltime job search) without going into any debt. Thanks to you I started the drugstore game and have been able to donate over $2,000 worth of products to area domestic violence shelters. I also share with my parents, who have been unemployed for the majority of the past two years.
You’re such a blessing not only to the people who read your site but to the friends and families and communities of readers too!
Thank you, and my God continue to bless you so you can continue to bless others.
I starting following you in 2007 right after we adopted our daughter and money was tight. I am surprised at how many bloggers are out there now “copying” you. I will always consider you the original. How many people work on your team?
You can read about my team members and visit their sites here: https://moneysavingmom.com/about
I love reading your blogs! I can tell that you work very hard to share information with your readers. Thank you!
I tried to work part-time (20 hours/week) from home when our son was first born. We didn’t hire a babysitter, so I worked during his naps. The arrangement was very difficult, so I quit my job when he was 1 year old. How do you make it work? Do you have a sitter or how do you find time in your day for work? Also, could you provide some ideas of work-at-home careers that allow for a flexible work schedule? Thanks!
My biggest help is to get up early. I get most of my work done while my children are still asleep in the mornings and then during afternoon naptime (my oldest daughter does independent homeschooling work during this time so I just sit near her and am available if she needs questions answered, etc.) The beauty of blogging is that I don’t have to report in to a supervisor. If I’m up in the night with a fussy child, I can just sleep in and skip my morning computer time without any guilt of having to make it up later.
There are some Income-Earning Ideas posted here for starters: https://moneysavingmom.com/downloads/income-earning-ideas
I think the biggest thing to determine when you’re first looking for a WAH job is what your gifts and talents are and how much time you have to invest. There’s a world of possibilities out there!
Great post Crystal! Was there a time when you had kids that you were spending many more hours on the blog? It amazes me how much you are able to get done with young kiddos as so often things don’t go “according to plan”. Was it more of a struggle before you had the team working for you? I’m thinking self-discipline with time management must be something you are really good at! I have been so blessed by this blog and I have learned so much from you. Thanks for all you do.
Yes, it was *definitely* more of a struggle before I had a team of people working for me, though the workload wasn’t quite as large then either. I was constantly behind and constantly on the verge of feeling overwhelmed — or feeling overwhelmed! I just had to let a lot of business stuff go and sit undone because there was no other option.
In another way, though, when we only had one or two young children and we weren’t officially homeschooling yet, my days were more free and less full. There’s no way I could be in the season of life I’m in now (three children, homeschooling, etc.) and be pulling off this blog without a team helping me out.
One thing which was really helpful when we had two younger children was that my husband had Daddy/Daughter Time with the girls for a few hours each week while I went to the coffee shop and wrote. It was a refreshing time for me and also allowed me to get a great deal of writing done in short amount of time.
Thank you so much for this series, and this particular post specifically. I’m just starting out with blogging and I am greatly enjoying it. I can 100% relate to struggling with keeping priorities in check because it really does turn into a full time job before you even know it. My hope is that blogging can help me to earn an income so that when my kids go to school I can be flexible enough to still be super involved in their lives (I am a stay at home mom now with a small part time job two days a week at a local mother’s day out), but what good does ignoring them now to be there for them later do (not to say I am ignoring my kids! But I’ve definitely had my moments where I feel torn between blogging a great post and playing…luckily so far I’ve played! But I’ve definitely felt the pull to do the opposite)?
It’s so good to know that someone as successful as you has had the same struggles as I am dealing with here on the newbie side.
Thanks again for your support of moms and women and bloggers!
I hope you have a fantastic weekend with your family!
I have been following your site since ’08 and I just want to thank you so much because your site changed my life. It helped me to realize that with a little work I could be a stay-at-home mom. I have read so many other blogs but moneysavingmom is by far my favorite and I’m always telling people about it. You turned me on to Dave Ramsey, Freezer cooking day and so many other money saving ideas. I thank God everyday that your site popped up that day when I was trying to make a change.
Thank you for your kind encouragement. I praise the Lord that He has used MSM to impact your life!
I just want to thank you for the series. I absolutely love your blog and your perspective.
I just love you Crystal 🙂
And it thrills me to bits how God has used you and blessed your family in your joint efforts to glorify Him.
Can’t wait to meet you in a few short weeks! Thank you for your very kind words.
I think that this is my favorite post in this series so far, though I’ve really enjoyed all of them. The mention of the “nudging,” the context of when you started Moneysavingmom.com, and your desire to wait on God’s confirmation for several weeks before launching into it were so helpful.
I think that it is tempting for many bloggers to see which blogs are successful, and think that they need to have a blog just like the one that they admire, but then suddenly the internet is flooded with a lot of the same type of blogs and they don’t know why theirs isn’t as successful as the one they admire. But to me, that nudging really seemed to be God’s leading, and it was such a great example of what can happen when we listen to and wait upon God.
Thanks so much for your kind encouragement! I love the quote which says, “God made you an original, don’t die a copy.” Follow His unique plan for your lives and find great blessing in that!
I’d love to know how you plan your posts. Do you have a schedule for the week, month, quarter? Or do you just write what comes to you?
Also, what does your daily computer time look like? What things do you do and how do you manage your time?
I don’t have a strict plan for posts, aside from giveaways which are scheduled weeks in advance (by my marketing assistant) in order to keep things organized. I use a Google calendar to tentatively plan series and post ideas for a few months at a time and then on Saturdays I plan out a pretty set plan for the following week on my Google blogging calendar. However, I rarely follow the plan exactly as life happens and things come up so posts get bumped. Having posts mapped out for the week, though, gives me guidance so that I’m not just blogging “by the seat of my pants” (though I do that sometimes, too!)
I manage my time in much the same way: I have a schedule for each day, but I’m flexible with it when things come up (as they often do!). I try to get the bulk of my blogging done before my children wake up and during afternoon Quiet Time. If my husband is working in the evenings then I sometimes will pop online after the children are in bed. However, I try to get to bed by 10 p.m. most nights as I’ve found I’m much more productive in the mornings instead of the evenings.
My best advice for time management (especially when it comes to blogging) is to only do one thing at a time. I’m much more effective when I only have one window open and one project going at a time. I try to work by a prioritized list and try to just focus on one thing at a time in the order of priority. I get distracted sometimes, but for the most part, this helps me to maximize the mileage of my time spent online.
@Allyson,
Amen! I’d love to know the same! 🙂
Crystal,
I have been following you since the end of ’07. I love you honestly, committment to your family, and committment to the Lord! I am a SAHM and preacher’s wife and feel so blessed to know that there are other christians out there that have an avenue to reaching others and teaching them about the true important things in life, even if they are really seeking how to save money, you never shy away from adding Biblical principles into your posts. I pray that God will continue to bless you and your family and I look forward to meeting you one maybe, I think we would be great friends! 🙂
Thank you for your kind encouragement! God bless you!
My sister and I are going to start posting recipes online but we want to know how you actually make money by running a blog. HELP! 🙂
You can read my Blogging For Profit series here: https://moneysavingmom.com/downloads/income-earning-ideas It’s rather outdated and I’m planning to revise and repost it as soon as this series is finished.
Thank you for sharing the history of your blog. I follow it faithfully, and am especially grateful for not only your emphasis on frugality, but more importantly your emphasis on God’s blessings and family. This is something that could be down my alley, but would love to read more about how you started and your lessons learned. I am curious about how much time it takes to maintain your site (including your team), and how you divide the responsibilities. Thank you!
The time varies depending upon the project load for my team (sometimes, we have a big tech project or design overhaul project which takes quite a bit extra), but overall, we’re currently averaging about 90 hours per week, divided amongst seven people. I pretty much only take care of writing posts and managing the team (with occasional extra projects thrown in there) so I’m working about three to four hours per weekday (usually two in the morning before my children wake up and one in the afternoon during our afternoon Quiet Time and then sometimes one thrown in after the children are in bed). I may eventually cut that back some more, but so far it’s working really well — and I enjoy it a lot so it doesn’t feel like “work” to me!